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A senior member of Qatar\u2019s ruling family and veteran statesman warned on Saturday that the coming days will prove decisive, cautioning that failure to resolve the\u00a0Israeli<\/a>-US war on\u00a0Iran<\/a>\u00a0could push the region into a prolonged escalation.<\/p>\n Hamad bin Jassim bin Jaber Al Thani, also known as HBJ, served as Qatar\u2019s prime minister from 2007 to 2013 and as foreign minister from 1992 to 2013.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat is happening in the Gulf has become a war in every sense of the word,\u201d warned HBJ in\u00a0post<\/a>\u00a0published on X.<\/p>\n \u201cThe situation has grown more complex over the past two days with the entry of Ansar Allah [Houthis] – one of the factors behind this complexity, but certainly not the only one,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n A billionaire and influential voice across regional capitals, HBJ has increasingly acted as an unofficial barometer of concerns many in Qatar avoid voicing publicly to sidestep angering the mercurial US President Donald Trump.<\/p>\n \u201cIf we do not see a resolution in the coming days, the situation could shift towards a longer escalation than initially expected,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n \u201cIt is clear that some actors want this war to continue, fully aware that its consequences will not directly affect them, aside from limited missile attacks,\u201d said HBJ.<\/p>\n ‘Uncertainty remains over whether the decision lies in Washington or in Israel on this issue. The coming days may make this clearer’<\/p>\n — Former Qatari premier, Hamad bin Jassim bin Jaber Al Thani<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n \u201cI am referring here to Israel, whose ports remain open to the Mediterranean and the Red Sea regardless of the circumstances,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n HBJ warned that the Gulf region now faces a \u201csuffocating blockade\u201d linked to the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, which could trigger \u201cserious economic repercussions\u201d not only for the region but for the global economy.<\/p>\n Earlier this month Qatar\u2019s Ras Laffan liquefied natural gas (LNG) facility suffered\u00a0extensive damage<\/a>\u00a0after it was hit with missiles, causing a surge in global gas prices.<\/p>\n The Iranian attack knocked \u200cout 17 percent of Qatar’s LNG export capacity, causing an estimated $20bn in lost annual revenue. He added that repairs will take three to five years.<\/p>\n \u201cThis raises the most important question: who benefits from this collapse, and why?,\u201d asked HBJ.<\/p>\n
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